


Eggplant Parmesan

by Falahime



Category: SK8 the Infinity (Anime)
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, just my usual bantery bullshit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-19 02:54:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29868054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Falahime/pseuds/Falahime
Summary: “So, Sakurayashiki-sensei, one of our most requested questions! Please tell us,  what inspired you to pursue calligraphy as a career?”Cherry chuckled uncomfortably. Of course he’d have to ask. “Well, let’s see...”Cherry and Joe get interviewed for a magazine and maybe learn a couple things about each other in the process.
Relationships: Nanjo Kojiro | Joe/Sakurayashiki Kaoru | Cherry Blossom
Comments: 19
Kudos: 316
Collections: Sk8 fics!!!





	Eggplant Parmesan

“I hope you don’t mind,” the young reporter (Yamazaki-something. Susumu? No, that wasn’t quite it—Sagaru, maybe? Cherry would look at his card again when he got home) said as they sat. “Have you been here before?”

“Ah, no,” Cherry lied, smiling that fake, er, _professional_ slight-smile he’d cultivated over the years.

Yamazaki-something’s face lit up. “Oh, you’re in for a treat. It’s absolutely delicious!”

“I’ve heard good things,” Cherry said, trying not to sound too strained.

“The owner was kind enough to give us the place to ourselves so we’d have privacy for this interview,” Yamazaki said, still bubbling with enthusiasm. “I know you said you haven’t eaten here, but perhaps you’ve met him?” Cherry shook his head slightly and the reporter continued. “He’s quite well known. I’m actually interviewing him after. The magazine is really pushing this double feature—”

“Good evening,” Joe said as he appeared with a customer-service smile. “Thank you for waiting.”

“Oh, Chef Nanjo-san!” Yamazaki said. “Thank you so much for accommodating us like this. It’s Sakurayashiki-sensei’s first time here, I was just telling him I’m sure he’s going to love it. Oh, geez, where are my manners—Sakurayashiki-sensei, this is chef and owner Nanjo-san. Nanjo-san, this is famous AI calligrapher Sakurayashiki-sensei.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Cherry said, doing his best to keep his lip from twisting in a sneer.

“Oh, the pleasure is _all mine_ ,” Joe replied smoothly, eyes twinkling. Cherry waited until Yamazaki looked away before he stuck out his tongue. But Joe was used to it and didn’t skip a beat, only looking even more amused as he asked, “What can I get for you this evening?”

“Whatever you recommend,” Yamazaki replied. Cherry must’ve made some sort of strangled sound since Yamazaki looked at him sheepishly and a little puzzled. “Unless that’s not alright?”

“N-no, it’s fine.” Cherry knew his eyebrow had to be twitching by now. He glared at Joe and ground out, “I’m sure whatever you choose will be just _lovely_.”

Joe wasn’t even trying to hide his grin. “Nothing less than the best for you, Sakurayashiki-sama.”

“He’s quite handsome, isn’t he?” Yamazaki whispered conspiratorially after Joe served their food and returned to the kitchen.

“Uh wuh?” Cherry said, immediately hating 1) his own ineloquence, 2) Yamazaki for catching him watching Joe saunter off, and 3) stupid Joe for being stupid and sauntering in the first place. Arrogant jerk.

Fortunately, Yamazaki seemed oblivious to Cherry’s three-pronged hatred. “For being so muscular, he’s amazingly graceful in the kitchen.” He leaned in and spoke in an excited hush, “There’s an urban legend that when Nanjo-san first opened, he popped a button while serving a food critic and she fainted on the spot. But after she came to, she wrote him a glowing review!”

Cherry attempted to look amused and not like he was clenching his jaw. “Surely that can’t be true,” he fake-chuckled. Only he knew absolutely that it _was_ , except Joe had popped two buttons, not just one. Joe had freaked, worried that she was going to write something scathing about the potential health code violations of having buttons flying around and possibly landing in food but his fears turned out to be entirely unnecessary. Still, he had invested in better-fitting chef coats after that.

Well, Cherry amended mentally as he noticed the strained fabric across Joe’s back, they were better-fitting for a while at least. Musclebound gorilla.

Yamazaki shrugged, leaning back into his own personal space. “Who’s to say? But he is incredibly popular with women.” Cherry felt that vein pulse in his temple. “And men too,” Yamazaki added with another lingering glance toward the kitchen. Belatedly picking up on Cherry’s silence, he coughed awkwardly into his hand. “Though he doesn’t have as many admirers as you, Sakurayashiki-sensei,” Yamazaki said with a placating smile, “which is why I’m so grateful for this interview. I truly expect this could very well be our highest-selling issue yet!”

“You flatter me,” Cherry said. “But I do hope it sells well.”

“Thanks,” Yamazaki beamed. “So, how’s your dinner?”

Yep, Cherry’s eyebrow was definitely twitching. “It’s…really good.”

Yamazaki asked a few easy questions over dinner, then started recording during the intentional reprieve before dessert.

“So, Sakurayashiki-sensei, one of our most requested questions! Please tell us,what inspired you to pursue calligraphy as a career?”

Cherry chuckled uncomfortably. Of course he’d have to ask. “Well, let’s see...”

_“What?” Cherry snapped. They were supposed to be doing their homework but Joe was obviously distracted, looking over every two seconds, and that was in turn distracting Cherry._

_“Nothing,” Joe said, fighting a smile._

_“It’s never ‘nothing’ with you. Just fucking say it.”_

_“It’s nothing!” Joe insisted with a laugh. “It’s just gonna piss you off anyways—”_

_“I’m already pissed off so just fucking tell me!” Cherry slammed his pencil on the table and heeled Joe in the thigh._

_“Ow!” Joe whined, rubbing his leg. “I was just thinking, your handwriting is very you, okay?!”_

_“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Cherry asked with a scowl._

_“It’s like...I dunno. Assertive yet elegant, maybe? Confident yet refined? Maybe...strong yet delicate?”_

_“Who are you calling delicate, motherfucker?” Cherry asked angrily._

_“No!” Joe laughed. “I...I just...your handwriting is really pretty.”_

_“Hah?”_

_“Your handwriting is really pretty,” Joe repeated. “And it just cracks me up because you’re this hard ass delinquent—”_

_“I am not a delinquent.”_

_“Okay, you_ pretend _to be this hard ass delinquent—”_

_“I hate you.”_

_“—but you have the most beautiful handwriting I’ve ever seen.” Joe flashed an almost sweet, lopsided grin. “I like it.”_

_“I’ll change it immediately,” Cherry said flatly._

_“Asshole.” Joe laughed. “See if I ever say anything nice about you again.”_

Cherry blinked away the memory. “I suppose...well, it’s a bit embarrassing to think about. But back in school I had, well, a frie—rival, I guess you could say.”

“A rival? How exciting!”

“Mm,” Cherry hummed noncommittally. “Anyway, it seemed we butted heads over anything and made everything into a competition.” His lips twitched in an involuntary smile at the memory. “I don’t think we ever said a nice word to each other. And then, one day, he complimented my writing. I hadn’t really given it much thought prior to that.” Cherry sighed. “I kind of hate to give him any credit but I suppose it was his fault that I started really thinking about my future with calligraphy.”

“What a fantastic story!” Yamazaki bubbled. “I have to ask, does your rival know he had such an impact on your career?”

“Oh definitely not,” Cherry said lightly, deliberately not meeting Joe’s eyes as he set dessert on their table.

“Thank you again for the interview, Sakurayashiki-sensei,” Yamazaki said, dipping in a bow as he saw Cherry off at the door. “I really appreciate your time and patience. I promise I’ll do my very best with this article. Thank you so much!”

“Of course,” Cherry said with a half-smile. “Enjoy your second interview.”

Cherry paused for a second outside the restaurant. He could faintly hear Yamazaki gushing to Joe about dinner and thanking him for the millionth time before he asked, “Everyone wants to know: what inspired you to become a chef?”

_“How much longer till fucking Shindo shows up?” Cherry bitched._

_Sitting in the grass, Joe just shrugged, unperturbed. “He probably got held up by snotty rich kid stuff.”_

_Cherry snorted. “That’s something, considering you’re a snotty rich kid too.”_

_“Like you’re one to talk,” Joe said dryly and Cherry conceded a shrug. “But he’s a snotty rich kid with lots of meddling family and obligations and stuff like that. My parents don’t give a shit about me enough to care what I do.”_

_“Must be nice,” Cherry said wistfully._

_“Not as nice as you’d think,” Joe replied quietly._

_Cherry flinched. “Oh. Right.” He sat on the grass next to Joe._

_“You don’t have to apologize.”_

_“I wasn’t going to.”_

_“Of course,” Joe said, but smiled all the same. “Still, Shindo is awfully late. Later than usual—” he was interrupted by an ungodly sound, maybe like a wild beast caught in a trap or something. Not that either of them would actually know what that sounded like. “What the hell was that?” Joe yelled, eyes flickering over Cherry. “Was that your stomach?”_

_“No,” Cherry said instantly, blushing a lovely shade of pink even as his stomach made that terrifying sound again. “I didn’t eat lunch, okay?” he blustered defensively at Joe’s incredulous stare._

_“That is seriously impressive,” Joe muttered to himself with a laugh, digging through his school bag. “Here.” He shoved a neatly-wrapped package at Cherry._

_“I don’t want your gross food,” Cherry said, even as he held out his hand._

_“Just shut up and take it,” Joe said, pushing it into his chest. “There’s a half a sandwich in there that I didn’t touch. So you don’t have to be all prissy about getting my cooties.” As if they hadn’t shared food and drinks a million times at this point. “Just make your stomach quit growling before you call in a bear or something.”_

_“There aren’t any fucking—” Cherry took an angry bite. “—bears here, Joe—ohhh.” Cherry’s face lit up as the sandwich hit his tongue. Even lukewarm and hours old it was unfairly delicious._

_“Good?” Joe asked with a smirk._

_“Passable,” Cherry said haughtily, wolfing it down. Once finished, he flopped back, lying on the grass, arms wide. Joe reached over and took the balled up wrapper from Cherry’s hand, his fingertips brushing Cherry’s palm maybe just a little more than absolutely necessary, tossing it back in his bag to throw away later._

_“Where’d you buy it?” Cherry asked, breaking the silence._

_“What?”_

_“The sandwich. Where’d you buy it?” Cherry added in a mumble, “It was really good.”_

_A slow but very genuine Cheshire Cat grin spread across Joe’s face._

_“What?” Cherry asked, panicked. “What’s that look for?” He sat up quickly. “What did you feed me?” Squishing Joe’s face in one elegant but very strong hand he asked, “Did you poison me?!”_

_“No!” Joe laughed, wrestling with Cherry’s arm, prying his hand from his face. “I made it.”_

_“Oh fuck you did poison me.” Cherry flopped back with a dramatic sigh, eyes closed, hand to his forehead. He cracked open an eyelid. “You didn’t really make that, did you?”_

_“I did,” Joe insisted. With a vicious grin he added, “And_ you _said it was really good.”_

_“I lied.”_

_“Nope! You said it was really good and I’m going to remember_ forever _that you said it. Ha!” Joe stuck out his tongue triumphantly._

_“I said I lied!” Cherry kicked Joe in the thigh. “I—I knew you made it and was trying to be nice and not hurt your feelings!”_

_“Oh right, like you have ever been nice to me ever!” Joe retorted, jabbing Cherry in the ribs. “It’s too late, I’m going to remember it until the day I die.”_

_“I can make sure that is today, then. Can’t say it was nice knowing you!” Cherry warned, pouncing on him._

_They tussled in the grass, wrestling each other into pretzels. Joe might have been tickling Cherry’s side and Cherry might have bitten onto Joe’s shoulder when they were startled by Shindo's slightly amused voice, “If you two wanted privacy for such...activities...all you had to do was ask.”_

_“Fuck you,” Cherry spat, the meat of Joe’s shoulder still in his mouth._

_“Screw you,” Joe said at the same time._

_“Oh, a threesome?” Shindo teased, easily dodging the bag Cherry chucked at his head._

“Oh, I don’t really remember,” Joe laughed easily. “Probably same reason I do anything, really. To impress girls.” Cherry could just picture Joe’s wink at the end.

Stupid gorilla.

With an eyeroll and an irritated huff, Cherry left.

“I hate that shirt,” Cherry said the minute Joe opened his front door, wearing that ugly orange-and-white striped shirt that was the bane of Cherry’s existence.

“I know. That’s why it’s my favorite,” Joe countered instantly. “Beer or wine?” Joe asked over his shoulder, heading to his kitchen while Cherry sat on the couch with an exhausted thump. “Or do you want me to mix something up?”

“Whatever,” Cherry said, which he knew Joe would interpret as “mix something up—and make it strong.” He spotted the magazine with their interviews on the couch cushion next to him and started thumbing through it. “I can’t believe you bought this.”

“Of course I did!”

“Why, so you can ogle pictures of yourself?” Cherry said dryly.

“Aw, Kaoru, you know me too well!” Joe said with a grin.

Cherry stopped flipping pages, assaulted by an unbelievably tacky picture of Joe shirtless, left hand holding the chef coat flung over his left shoulder, hiding his stupid tattoo, right hand on his right hip. But the shirtlessness wasn’t the worst of it. Smirking his stupid smirk that he probably thought was sexy, he stood in front of a table at hip-height loaded with ingredients: vegetables, cheeses, it looked like maybe a slab of prosciutto.

And a very large, very strategically and suggestively-placed eggplant.

“What even is this?” Cherry choked back a snort, refusing to laugh. “You are fucking disgusting.”

“What’s wrong with it?” Joe handed Cherry his highball glass and sat down next to him. “You checking out my eggplant? I guess it is pretty impressive.”

“Don’t flatter yourself.”

Joe just laughed, stretching his arm along the back of the couch.

“Don’t put your arm around me, gorilla,” Cherry huffed, taking a sip of his drink and relishing the perfect balance of strong and sweet. It was really good. Of course.

“Like I would!” Joe retorted, taking a drink from his own glass. “It’s on the back of the couch, not around you.”

“Close enough,” Cherry said with a dismissive sniff.

Joe let his arm fall around Cherry’s shoulders at that. He jerked his chin at the open magazine in Cherry’s lap. “You gonna read it to me?”

“Why would I read you your own interview?” Cherry asked, disgusted. He pinched the back of Joe’s hand where it rested on his shoulder, but Joe just responded by squeezing Cherry’s upper arm, so he gave up. For now. “Are you really so stupid that you can’t remember what you said?” Joe opened his mouth to retort but Cherry continued, “Nevermind, musclebrain. You probably are that stupid.”

“You really haven’t read yours yet?” Joe asked.

“No,” Cherry took a decent swig of his drink before setting the glass on the coffee table. He flipped to his own interview and skimmed. “Do I need to? You heard all of it when we were there, didn’t you?”

“I might’ve eavesdropped a little bit.”

“Ass,” Cherry said, ignoring Joe’s snort. “Wait, what’s this?” He held the magazine up to get a better look, reading aloud, “ _With such a beautifully gentle expression Sakurayashiki-sensei spoke of his school rival_.” Cherry looked up, appalled. “What the fuck, Yamazaki?!”

Joe laughed. “Well, he’s not wrong.”

“Are you serious?” Cherry asked, aghast. “That is the _last_ interview that little shit is getting.” Irritated, he quickly flipped pages until he found Joe’s interview. “Enough of that. Hopefully he embarrassed you even more. As if that stupid photo isn’t embarrassing enough.” He stopped to glance at Joe from the corner of his eye. “Please, please tell me that wasn’t your idea.”

“It wasn’t!” Joe said. “Yamazaki-kun and the photographer thought that up.” At Cherry’s sigh of relief, he added, “Though I’m thinking about getting it blown up and framed for my wall.”

“Do it and I’m never coming over ever again,” Cherry threatened.

“Every time you come over you say you’re never coming over again.”

“Anyway,” Cherry said, moving on. “Let’s see what stupid shit you said. Ahem.” He cleared his throat before doing his Yamazaki impression, “‘Nanjiro-san, why did you become a chef?’ Let’s see...” He switched to his Joe-voice. “‘I’m a big idiot that eats my body weight in meat so it seemed the easiest route. Plus it impresses bimbos with big boobs.’”

“I did not say that!” Joe laughed and maybe the alcohol was kicking in because Cherry almost laughed with him. “Read it right.”

“Fine, fine,” Cherry said. “Alright, let’s see...why did _Nanjiro-san_ become a chef... ‘ _Oh, I don’t really remember. Probably same reason I do anything, really. To impress girls,’ Chef Nanjo said with a wink._ ”

“I knew it,” Cherry muttered, glaring out the corner of his eye at Joe, who just smirked and shrugged. With an eyeroll he resumed reading, “ _I’m just joking. Honestly…one day after school I ended up sharing a sandwich I made with my secret crush. And seeing their face light up, eating food I made, is a memory I’ll never forget. I’ll remember forever how happy it made me when they said it was good._ ”

A chill ran up Cherry’s spine and he noticed Joe was very, very still. He continued reading aloud:

“ _Yamazaki: That is too sweet! So did you win over your crush this way?_ ”

Cherry paused to swallow.

“ _Oh I never confessed. I would’ve been rejected instantly. (Chef Nanjo-san c-chuckled.)_ ” Cherry stumbled slightly. _“But I felt at the time I wanted to learn how to make even more delicious things that would keep making them smile. And I thought if I had a restaurant, no matter what happened, my important person would always have a place they could go. I wanted to always be there for them_ ,” Cherry finished, voice slightly quivering. He tossed the magazine to the other end of the couch. “You fucking sap. Now I’m embarrassed for us both,” Cherry mumbled.

“What makes you think I’m talking about you?” Joe asked, corner of his lips quirked in an almost-smile.

“Alright. Then who are you talking about?” Cherry challenged.

“You.” Joe grinned.

Cherry laughed in spite of himself. “You are so stupid,” he sighed, scrubbing his face with a hand.

“Kaoru,” Joe said slowly and Cherry’s heart stopped, knowing what was coming next. “Can I kiss you?” He grimaced. “Or are you going to bite me?”

“Yes to both.”

Joe huffed a silent laugh before leaning closer. “You’re such a brat.”

“You like it.” Cherry tilted his head up instinctively.

“I do,” Joe admitted with a smirk.

“Some days I wonder what the hell is wrong with you,” Cherry whispered, their lips almost brushing.

“You say that but you love me anyway,” Joe teased.

“Fuck you,” Cherry said, a little too breathily.

“Gladly,” Joe replied, voice low and rumbling and Cherry swore he could feel it on his tongue.

“Are you ever going to fucking kiss me or just banter until I get annoyed and leave—”

Joe’s lips pressed softly against his and for a moment just stayed, waiting for the moment when it broke, shattering into a mistake and icy sharp rejection. But that moment didn’t come. Rather than pulling away, Cherry leaned in, and after a few more experimental and increasingly urgent presses of lips, he sighed sensually into Joe’s mouth, following the sound with his tongue.

With a needy growl in the back of his throat, Joe responded eagerly, the dam finally burst on years of tension between them. They’d grown up together, shared everything (whether they wanted to or not). Perhaps this was inevitable, that even in their passion they complimented each other. The way they fit together and synced so perfectly—

“You _bit_ me!” Joe yelped, swiping his bloodied lip with his thumb.

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t,” Cherry said, flushed and slightly breathless.

Huffing a laugh, Joe buried his face in the crook of Cherry’s neck. “You drive me crazy,” he breathed, alternating between suckling, kissing, and nipping.

“F-fuck, I could say the—” Cherry moaned slightly, “—saaame—ouch! What the _fuck_ , Kojiro?!” Cherry yelled, startled.

Joe sat back slightly, grinning and licking his lips. “Payback’s a bitch.” Then he ducked back in, tenderly kissing over the very obvious teeth marks at the junction of Cherry’s neck.

For a second Cherry just stared at him in surprise then burst out laughing. “Fuck you!”

He could feel Joe’s lips smile against his skin right before he asked, “Is that a threat or a promise?”

“Morning,” Joe said softly as he returned to the bedroom, his voice followed immediately by a delicious aroma. “Sit up, Kaoru-sama. I brought you breakfast in bed.”

“What’s for breakfast?” Cherry yawned sleepily, sitting up with a stretch.

“Eggplant quiche,” Joe said, setting the breakfast tray across Cherry’s lap.

“Eggplant?” Cherry repeated with dread, Joe’s stupid obscene magazine photo immediately coming to mind.

“What?” Joe asked innocently, following Cherry’s obvious glance at his groin. “Oh, are you burned out already? Last night you told me it was your favorite.”

Careful not to upend the tray, Cherry threw a pillow at Joe’s head (which he just caught with a laugh—of course). “I hate you.”

Joe burst out laughing. “I’m just messing with you anyways,” he said with a lopsided smile, climbing into bed to sit next to Cherry. “It’s a Mediterranean-inspired omelette.” He brushed a kiss on Cherry’s shoulder before asking, “What do you want for breakfast tomorrow?”

Despite pretending to throw it out so casually, Cherry could feel the tension radiating off of Joe as he waited for the answer to the real question hidden behind his words.

_Will you still be here tomorrow?_

_Will you let me keep waking up next to you?_

_Is this real?_

_Do you love me too?_

“Remember those breakfast burrito things we had in LA?” Cherry asked, chewing a bite of omelette. His eyes flickered to Joe, who nodded. “I want you to make that. For breakfast tomorrow.” He risked another glance at Joe...whose answering grin was absolutely radiant.

“Sure thing,” Joe replied, a little hoarse with emotion. He nodded toward the omelette that Cherry had already mostly demolished. “So,” he asked slowly, looking Cherry in the eye. “How is it?”

“Don’t get cocky, gorilla,” Cherry said disdainfully. Then added in a petulant mumble, “It was really good.”

The happiest laugh burst out of Joe’s mouth before he kissed Cherry on the temple. “I’m going to remember forever that you said it.”

“Good, because I’m never saying it again.”

“Aww,” Joe laughed, ruining his own pout. He kissed the shell of Cherry’s ear. “One more time?” he whispered. “Please?”

Cherry sighed loudly. “Alright, but this is the last time, so listen up.” Gripping Joe’s jaw in one hand, Cherry purred seductively into Joe’s ear, “It. Was Really. _Good.”_

After Cherry let his hand drop, Joe just stared at him for a moment, eyes smoldering before thunking his forehead on Cherry’s shoulder.

“Fuck, Kaoru,” Joe groaned, mouthing Cherry’s neck. “Are you _sure_ you don’t want eggplant for breakfast?”

It took a second for Cherry’s mind to catch up but when he did he smacked Joe’s arm. Hard.

“I hate you,” he said, definitely not laughing. “And I mean it this time: I’m never coming over ever again!”

With a laugh, Joe wrestled him into a hug, breakfast tray and empty plate falling harmlessly to the floor as they rolled around in bed. “Too bad,” Joe said, squeezing Cherry tightly and kissing the corner of his mouth. “I’m never letting you go.”

And if the kiss that followed tasted slightly of omelette, neither cared to complain.

It was still really good.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. In the flashback, Cherry calls Kojiro "Joe"; I thought about changing this but decided (fantasized?) that Cherry is the one who somewhat sarcastically gave Joe the nickname in the first place, which Joe then turned into his sk8 name. 
> 
> 2\. I also like to think that contrary to his dignified, refined public image, Cherry has an awful foul mouth, a leftover habit of his rebellious school days.
> 
> 3\. Pretty sure the next time he eats with a client at Joe's restaurant, Cherry's client asks for the "chef's recommendation" and with a perfectly straight face, Joe replies, "Eggplant parmesan." However, I can't decide if Cherry surreptitiously kicks his shin from under the table or "accidentally" stabs him with a fork.


End file.
